The Daily News. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1915. MR. CHURCHILL IN DEFENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, 18 November 1915, Page 4

The Daily News. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1915. MR. CHURCHILL IN DEFENCE.

One 01 the most unedifying spectacles iliat any Parliament. could witness at ihc present time of national crisis :s that of a Minister who has resigned from ilu; Cabinet making personal explanations which partake more or less of the process of washing soiled political linen in public. It is not so much the inevitable shifting of blame 01: to other shoulders that matters, the main point being the unfavorable ell'eet created by such utterances as those of Mr. Churchill 0:1 the neutral States whom it is of such vital importance to impress with the unity of purpose and aim of the Entente Governments. While giving Mr. Churchill credit for studious moderation in his language and Tor taking up aj> attitude of being more tinned against than culpable, there is stiil an absence of justification for the step that he took at so momentous a period iu the country's history, lie might have felt aggrieved at his non-inclusion in the War Committee, but to have resigned his sinecure ofliee and then proclaim to the world a number of details 'Hint could, only create a feeling of w.fnl of confidence 111 prominent and responsible officials was a £ we ester of judgment

that ill became one wiio has taken such a, prominent [/art in the conduct oi' tlu 1 war. Human nature at its best is but frail, but we have Uie right to expect that a British Cabinet Minister shall be actuated with loftier sentiments than those of a member of a pariah council. Even though piqued and sorely aggrieved, one would have thought that Mr. Churchill'* iirst and last desire would be to sink his individuality for the time being, bear his slights with becoming courage, and await a fitting time in which to intrude his personal all'uirs—especially when tlicy had such a prominent bearing on the war—rather than publish to our enemies and neutrals matters which should have been kept from their knowledge. The disposition he evinced to shelter himself llehind Lord Kitchener and Lord Fisher did not do him any good service, Although some scattered rays of light were thrown on the Antwerp project and on the Dardanelles campaign. The Empire was quite content to await the end oi" the vu.- lor the clearing up of all the matters touched upon by Mr. Churchill. Had he been possessed of the true ideals of statesmanship ho would merely have explained the cause oi his resignation, taken full responsibility for all his administrative actions—whether right or wrong—and left for a future occasion that justification which lie was so eager to make good. In giving Mr. Churchill credit for dealing with "a delicate situation with loyalty and discretion," Mr. Asquith emphasised to the full the spirit in which the best traditions of British politics are enshrined. We cannot but feel that there was fur more conveyed by those words than appears on the surface, They were terse and to the point, but reading between the lines it would seem that they were more a cutting rebuke than terms of praise, and this is the more apparent when Mr. Asquith went on to say that Mr. Churchill had said some things which he (Mr. Asquith) would rather he had not said, while he had omitted some things which could be said hereafter. If this remark means anything it clearly indicates that Mr. Churchill's explanation might be regarded as made up of two partsmatters that ought not to have been introduced and others that could well be held over. If Mr. Churchill has not justified his actions, he has certainly justified his resignation, for it is abundantly clear that though he has been a wise counsellor, a brilliant colleague, and a faithful friend, he is in soro need of temperamental recuperation and an enlarged view of the duties of statesmanship. Lord Fisher's dignified silence is in striking contrast to Mr. Churchill's indiscreet and ill-timed criticisms of those with whom he has been v.orkng and on whom he has placed blame that must not be accepted as just until the accuse 3 have been found to be at fault, and there will be no fitting opportunity for this un'til after the war. The wonder is that, feeling he had such a good ease, Mr. Churchill should ha*'e been so illadvised as to create distrust instead of inspiring confidence.